In Photos: The Secret Lives of New York City Buildings

There’s much more to cities than the people that occupy them. The buildings that pop up around certain populaces are just as unique as the faces that pass by each day. New York City is one of those incredibly rare places where you’ll find decades—centuries, even—of history hidden within the nooks and crannies of building facades.

Marc Yankus, a photographer of more than 30 years whose illustrations and collage work has been featured in the New York Times and past issues of Travel + Leisure, has debuted a series of photographs called “The Secret Lives of Buildings.” Yankus helps us all get to know some of the most famous (Flatiron Building) and forgotten (residential brownstones) structures in one of the world’s biggest metropolitan areas.

Trained in painting, drawing, and photography, Yankus is known for his collages of engravings from the 1800s. It was during this time in his career that his own photography crept into his collage work, quickly becoming the foundation for new scenes. Architecture photography has always been a fascination for Yankus: you can find photos that are soft-focused and dreamlike associated with his name. His new work, however, focuses tightly on detail, giving each structure its own personality.

“I’ve created my own vision of a city,” Yankus recently shared with T+L on a phone call. “I basically have removed most of the people, cars, street signs, and traffic lights and created an otherworld where you step into another dimension—a much quieter New York City. The one that I would like to live in.”

If you’d like to see some of Marc Yankus’ work in person, the debut for his show “The Secret Lives of Buildings” is on October 13th at ClampArt Gallery in New York City. The photographs will be on display through November 26, 2016. An opening reception will be hosted in the space on October 13th from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

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In Photos: The Secret Lives of New York City Buildings

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